The Christmas Session was the second one we had remote dispatching (from far way Berlin!) and it worked well again. After 2 hours, the shift of the remote dispatcher was over and I took over.
This was not easy, because the first-trick dispatcher did not provide me with documentation about each trains whereabouts! Of course, how could he? After all the information was on his desk and could not be transferred to Vienna!
So I had to ask each known train who and where it was and in which direction it was going. This is where CTC really has it's advantages, even if it is still not completed in JMRI. One train usually gets only 2 Track Warrants (From Staging to Avery and then to Staging) and the rest is done by signal indication. (Which, anyhow, confuses some engineers ;-) "...this is 202 in Adair - dispatcher, my warrant says to go to East Staging, but the signal is red and the switch is against me..." "Hold on, 202 - be glad that the signal is red because if it were not you would be dead by now, there is a train coming up against you..." (Names and locations deliberately changed!)
I really enjoyed beeing the dispatcher again because of this and the fact that many engineers are now able to make up the multi-tractions themselves and assign a FRED without my help. And then there is my youngest son who can do all this (and is the last one being able to climb into the confines of the upper helix. But as he has grown significantly in the last year I doubt if he will be doing this any longer!) and helps me alot.
With CTC all it takes is to set the turnout levers, the signal goes green (or yellow) and without any Track Warrant the train continues. Setting up a meet is a snap - just think ahead where you will let it it happen, align the turnout levers and don't forget to set them back after it has happend. Remind the engineers to report when they are clear so that the procedure is accelerated (not all cabooses are lighted, so a block occupation indicator is not always correct) and off you go.
Sometimes, though, you will create a gridlock with 3 trains on 2 tracks which will cause havoc on the rest of the trains as planned meets evaporate and well laid out plans are nullified.
In this moments, the safety logic built into the CTC panel will work against you as the dispatcher cannot align a turnout when the block it is in is occupied. This is a lesson learned and I will have to find a way to allow the dispatcher to align the turnout when the block is occupied without letting go of the safety it provides.
I hesitate to admit that I did not use a dispatchers sheet to record the train movements as I had the feeling that it would distract me from thinking ahead by fixing my thoughts on what already had happened not what was going to happen. I know that this is not prototypically correct and I will have to find a way around this. A magnetic board perhaps, where I can shift the train numbers araound? The ultimative geek-like solution would be to use transponding and get the numbers of the locos on the screen in JMRI, but that is no option at the moment...
All in all - happy times for the operations guy as there are so many things we can do now with software that were only possible with expensive hardware afew years ago!
Happy Model Railroading!
Avery Depot
It took very long to build, but now it is nearly ready - the depot!
Samstag, 18. Dezember 2010
Christmas Session
Yesterday was a not-so-ordinary operating session here on the St Paul Pass in 1:160! Unusually heavy (real) snowfall here in Vienna and - so they say - the coldest days since 1995 (-8 C) made the way to the session really hard for many of our crew members. But, except for 2 calling in sick - they all made it from as far away as Styria or a small town somewhere over the danube, despite icy highways, derailed streetcars, cancelled trains and 1 foot deep snow in the streets.
So, I can really say: that is a dedicated, hard to beat crew that assembled here to operate trains. And besides running trains, they got a cold cellar (+10 C in the beginning), not enough Punsch (w/o alcohol, as Rule G applies!) and some chocolate.
It started all with delays - I was nearly not able to make it on time, as I forgot my driving license at home and had to return home in the middle of the crazy pre-Christmas friday evenening traffic madness. And then finding a good place for the car (this is one where you can get your car not only in, but also out) wasn't easy, either.
Our dispatcher from Berlin was right on time, but most crew members were not so we started with the snow plow train and a few local freights (and forgot to turn on the fast clock!) Traffic density grew with each member arriving from the cold and stormy outside world and we soon had more and more fun!
3 issues came up during the session:
Because of the low temperature, 4 of my AlanCurtis 89 foot flatcars lost their kingpins and made running #99 difficult - not only that, but following trains usually found the missing kingpins when they run over one, hereby derailing themself. Now, this is an easy fix with some superglue.
The second issue has to do with the FoxValley metal wheels - as good as they are, they are not really compatible with Peco turnouts, not to speak of the Shinohara 3-way turnouts, where they tend to fall in between the rails! I'm tempted to replace them soon, despite having paid more than 70 Euros for each. They are a real PITA.
The newest issue is that the 3 Amps the Intellibox is providing for the staging yards is not enough when they are full of locomotives, as even if they are just idling away, they consume power. It would be good to be able to turn off the staging tracks, alas I did not make any provisions for that. <Sigh> I already ordered a 4 Amp booster from LDT but they delayed that product for a year and it will not be here before March 2011. In the meanwhile, we'll have to live with that.
But let's focus on what was fine:
The dedication of the crew (I hope everybody had a safe trip home and those who needed to catch a train did so!)
The relaxed atmosphere.
The patience of the crewmembers - it is not so easy to be stuck in the hole somewhere in a siding and no other traffic is in sight and not knowing the dispatcher's overall plan.
Just one failed decoder!
No Skype and Go-To-My-PC problems, no UMTS connestion drop!
Just one rear-ender. (A train without a lighted caboose is always in danger to be rear-ended, as the protecting signal goes to "approach(yellow)" long before the train left the block.) When will Kato bring us the caboose trucks again as they are simply the best option if you wanted to provide electrical pickup for a caboose.
It was a great night - and it lasted from 6pm till midnight and we run all trains!
Have a merry Christmas and those who won't be here for the planned worksession between Christmay and New Year - "Happy New Year"
So, I can really say: that is a dedicated, hard to beat crew that assembled here to operate trains. And besides running trains, they got a cold cellar (+10 C in the beginning), not enough Punsch (w/o alcohol, as Rule G applies!) and some chocolate.
It started all with delays - I was nearly not able to make it on time, as I forgot my driving license at home and had to return home in the middle of the crazy pre-Christmas friday evenening traffic madness. And then finding a good place for the car (this is one where you can get your car not only in, but also out) wasn't easy, either.
Our dispatcher from Berlin was right on time, but most crew members were not so we started with the snow plow train and a few local freights (and forgot to turn on the fast clock!) Traffic density grew with each member arriving from the cold and stormy outside world and we soon had more and more fun!
3 issues came up during the session:
Because of the low temperature, 4 of my AlanCurtis 89 foot flatcars lost their kingpins and made running #99 difficult - not only that, but following trains usually found the missing kingpins when they run over one, hereby derailing themself. Now, this is an easy fix with some superglue.
The second issue has to do with the FoxValley metal wheels - as good as they are, they are not really compatible with Peco turnouts, not to speak of the Shinohara 3-way turnouts, where they tend to fall in between the rails! I'm tempted to replace them soon, despite having paid more than 70 Euros for each. They are a real PITA.
The newest issue is that the 3 Amps the Intellibox is providing for the staging yards is not enough when they are full of locomotives, as even if they are just idling away, they consume power. It would be good to be able to turn off the staging tracks, alas I did not make any provisions for that. <Sigh> I already ordered a 4 Amp booster from LDT but they delayed that product for a year and it will not be here before March 2011. In the meanwhile, we'll have to live with that.
But let's focus on what was fine:
The dedication of the crew (I hope everybody had a safe trip home and those who needed to catch a train did so!)
The relaxed atmosphere.
The patience of the crewmembers - it is not so easy to be stuck in the hole somewhere in a siding and no other traffic is in sight and not knowing the dispatcher's overall plan.
Just one failed decoder!
No Skype and Go-To-My-PC problems, no UMTS connestion drop!
Just one rear-ender. (A train without a lighted caboose is always in danger to be rear-ended, as the protecting signal goes to "approach(yellow)" long before the train left the block.) When will Kato bring us the caboose trucks again as they are simply the best option if you wanted to provide electrical pickup for a caboose.
It was a great night - and it lasted from 6pm till midnight and we run all trains!
Have a merry Christmas and those who won't be here for the planned worksession between Christmay and New Year - "Happy New Year"
Mittwoch, 8. Dezember 2010
Operating Sessions
The next best thing to chocolate are the Operating Sessions which we hold once a month (except July and August). With the September, 2010 session we switched to a Friday evening schedule, starting at 6 PM. We use 1:6 fast time, so in order to get a full day, the sessions last 4 hours.
It is worth to note that we seldom make it in 4 hours, it usually takes a little longer to finish up the schedule
There are a few reasons why this is so:
It is worth to note that we seldom make it in 4 hours, it usually takes a little longer to finish up the schedule
There are a few reasons why this is so:
- Derailments on the upper helix can screw up the schedule really fast.
- Stalling trains on the upper helix will screw up the schedule!
- Inexperienced operators.
- Operators not adhering to their warrant or not watching the signals or misinterpreting the signals.
- Operators running into an open switch and thereby causing a short.
- Derailments in general.
3 to 5 will be solved with time and ongoing training.
And 6 is really a growing problem, as we changed many wheelsets to Fox Valley's metal ones which don't really match up with Peco Code 80 and Code 55 turnouts - they tend to fall into the gap at the frog. Add to that a few not so well laid turnouts and you have a problem! It's very hard to back a long train through the Avery yard ladder without having derailments. Thanks to tips from the Internet, I'm using automotive tail light bulbs to guard against shorts in most blocks.
I really have no idea how to solve that problem. To be precise, I do have an idea how to solve that. But that would mean changing all turnouts with homebuilt ones, for example by using the FastTrack jigs. So far, I've heard many good things about the FastTrack jigs, but they are costly and I'm not sure if I will be skilled enough to build with them.
Besides these few obstacles, we really have fun as we have a relaxed approach to the sessions. There is no place for yelling or being obnoxious, and everyone tries to be as helpful as possible. It is well remembered that a failing train will eventually also delay the own train. The motto is: "Have fun!" - and that is how it should be!
Mittwoch, 1. Dezember 2010
Why American Style? Why the St Paul Pass?
American Railroading fascinated me since I was a youth after I saw a photo of a real long train in one of the Euopean Railfan magazines. When I bought one of the best books ever published on Railroads, "The Milwaukee Road" by Fred Hyde, in the eighties, the virus got me.
And I was hooked by the Pacific Northwest setting - endless forests, remoteness, long trains - so one day it became clear that this was what I wanted.
When I do a little railfanning during sessions it is clear to me that the decision was the right one. Seeing a string of locos wearing orange and black coming out onto a high trestle from some dense forest is a sight to behold!
The Milwaukee Road with its electric operation was a natural choice, because that linked it somehow to Europe.
Many hours reading in books and later the Internet gave me the information I needed. I learned how US-style layouts were built and operated and what the thinking behind it is. So out went my European H0 scale and my 0m garden railway and in came the N scale locos from Kato (and later Atlas) and the cars of Atlas and all the other manufacturers.
A huge part of my car fleet are the leftovers from ahm/Aurora/PostageStamp Trains/Atlas which were all produced in Austria. When Atlas turned to other sources there were obviously a few thousand cars left. They found their way to a second-hand shop in Vienna and that's were I found them and bought many at very cheap prices.
I try to stick to the 1980-1985 era, so most cars have lost their roofwalk and have roller bearing trucks.
And I was hooked by the Pacific Northwest setting - endless forests, remoteness, long trains - so one day it became clear that this was what I wanted.
When I do a little railfanning during sessions it is clear to me that the decision was the right one. Seeing a string of locos wearing orange and black coming out onto a high trestle from some dense forest is a sight to behold!
The Milwaukee Road with its electric operation was a natural choice, because that linked it somehow to Europe.
Many hours reading in books and later the Internet gave me the information I needed. I learned how US-style layouts were built and operated and what the thinking behind it is. So out went my European H0 scale and my 0m garden railway and in came the N scale locos from Kato (and later Atlas) and the cars of Atlas and all the other manufacturers.
A huge part of my car fleet are the leftovers from ahm/Aurora/PostageStamp Trains/Atlas which were all produced in Austria. When Atlas turned to other sources there were obviously a few thousand cars left. They found their way to a second-hand shop in Vienna and that's were I found them and bought many at very cheap prices.
I try to stick to the 1980-1985 era, so most cars have lost their roofwalk and have roller bearing trucks.
The Layout
The layout is built in N Scale (1:160) and is point-to-point, that means: no circle, no loop - just as it usually is in reality. The distance between East and West staging yards is 115 metres, it usually takes 15 to 20 minutes for a train to get over the line. (Much longer during operating sessions because of frequent meets and a few derailments here and there)
It's an American-style layout and that means operating as an engineer. European layouts usually have to automate many aspects if they are huge and the operators work the yards and not the trains. I just find the idea that you could be engineer fascinating which is quite realistic when using walk around control. And since the signals are operable the engineer better walks with his train or else he might miss a red signal.
And that is another big difference to European style: you would have to automate the signals, too- every train encountering a red light will have to be brought to an automatic stop, oftentimes with sophisticated ways to achieve a realistic slow approach and a soft start. No need for that here! Since every train is operated by human intervention, it is the human that is responsible for stopping.
Of course, we had a few sideswipes in our sessions but no really bad accident.
There are 7 sidings and one yard, from east to west:
East Portal, Montana
Roland, Idaho
Adair
Kyle
Avery - the only yard. The yardmaster here is the most challenging job on the railroad - not for the faint of heart!
Ethelton
Pocono
Calder
and of course, the two 18-track staging yards.
When the lighting is finished somewhere 2011, the last huge project will be the extension of the line in bith directions, which will bring the total length to over 200 metres. This is scheduled for 2011/2012, albeit it well be a challenge to make this work without interrupting the monthly sessions too much.
The turnouts are operated manually, except the entrances to the sidings and the yard. For those I'm using Fulgurex (PFM) and stall type switch motors (they are more quiet).
I scratchbuilt 50 signals and installed them on the layout, driven by two SE8c controllers from digitrax. The signals work as ABS. When I get to the programming of JMRI it will be (almost) real CTC operation. (That is the current project)
It's an American-style layout and that means operating as an engineer. European layouts usually have to automate many aspects if they are huge and the operators work the yards and not the trains. I just find the idea that you could be engineer fascinating which is quite realistic when using walk around control. And since the signals are operable the engineer better walks with his train or else he might miss a red signal.
And that is another big difference to European style: you would have to automate the signals, too- every train encountering a red light will have to be brought to an automatic stop, oftentimes with sophisticated ways to achieve a realistic slow approach and a soft start. No need for that here! Since every train is operated by human intervention, it is the human that is responsible for stopping.
Of course, we had a few sideswipes in our sessions but no really bad accident.
There are 7 sidings and one yard, from east to west:
East Portal, Montana
Roland, Idaho
Adair
Kyle
Avery - the only yard. The yardmaster here is the most challenging job on the railroad - not for the faint of heart!
Ethelton
Pocono
Calder
and of course, the two 18-track staging yards.
When the lighting is finished somewhere 2011, the last huge project will be the extension of the line in bith directions, which will bring the total length to over 200 metres. This is scheduled for 2011/2012, albeit it well be a challenge to make this work without interrupting the monthly sessions too much.
The turnouts are operated manually, except the entrances to the sidings and the yard. For those I'm using Fulgurex (PFM) and stall type switch motors (they are more quiet).
I scratchbuilt 50 signals and installed them on the layout, driven by two SE8c controllers from digitrax. The signals work as ABS. When I get to the programming of JMRI it will be (almost) real CTC operation. (That is the current project)
What is it all about
Shall we daresay it? We play with trains! Yes, and we enjoy it. But who is "we", anyway? And where and how is it?
This is a blog about a N scale layout, American style, but in the middle of Europe. Time permitting I will post about the history, the operating sessions and the people behind it.
It all started in 1992 when I finished computer programmer school and started a "career" in IT, where I still work. Albeit the days as a computer programmer are long over, I still like to do a little programming and so choose JMRI as the program of choice for operation of the signals and turnouts.
It was a personal project in the beginning, so the first 10 years I did everything by myself. I renovated the cellar and put a concrete floor into it (this is a sidestory, to be told later - the fact that I did not do the whole floor at once brought a severe crisis years later), erected the benchwork and laid track. This was accomplished by 2001. In 2003 it was all electrified and I started to invite a few friends and my older children to join me on the first operating session. By that time I had bought an Intellibox (by Uhlenbrock) and started to convert to DCC.
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